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Ford is set to revive its Chennai manufacturing facility located at Maraimalai Nagar with production activities scheduled to restart from June 2026
Ford’s relationship with India has been anything but straightforward over the past decade. In September 2021, the American automaker announced its exit from vehicle manufacturing and sales operations in the country after years of mounting losses – officially bringing the curtain down on models like the EcoSport, Endeavour and Figo. While sales and production stopped, Ford made it clear that India would continue to play a key role in its global plans.
Fast forward to now and that strategy is beginning to take more concrete shape. The Dearborn-based manufacturer is set to revive its Chennai manufacturing facility located at Maraimalai Nagar with production activities scheduled to restart from June 2026 as we can exclusively divulge. However, this revival will not involve locally sold cars.
Instead, the plant will be repurposed to manufacture next-gen engines exclusively for export markets and perhaps some nameplates including Everest (known as Endeavour in India) could be shipped from here down the line. The decision follows a Memorandum of Understanding signed with the Tamil Nadu government – coming about a year after Ford issued a Letter of Intent in September 2024.
The Maraimalai Nagar facility which has remained dormant since Ford wound down its India operations in 2021 will more likely be upgraded to support advanced powertrain manufacturing. Once fully operational, the Chennai plant will have an annual production capacity of around 2.35 lakh engines but specific details regarding displacement, fuel type or electrification support are yet to be revealed.
The revival will be backed by an initial investment estimated at Rs. 3,250 crore. The capital infusion is also expected to generate close to 600 new jobs – giving a boost to the local manufacturing ecosystem. It is worth noting that the company has maintained a limited presence in India even after exiting retail sales.
It continues to export powertrains from its Sanand facility in Gujarat which is currently leased from Tata Motors following the sale of its both Indian plants three years ago. While Ford’s return to car sales in India remains unlikely in the near term, the restart of production at Chennai reiterates the implication of India for the brand as a significant export and engineering hub.
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